Mac OS X – AddictiveTipshttp://www.addictivetips.comTech tips to make you smarterThu, 17 Aug 2017 16:30:00 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.1How To Temporarily Disable Sleep On macOShttp://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/how-to-temporarily-disable-sleep-on-macos/http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/how-to-temporarily-disable-sleep-on-macos/#commentsWed, 02 Aug 2017 18:44:29 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=205087If you leave your Mac unattended for a while, it will eventually go to sleep. This isn’t a revolutionary macOS specific feature. All major desktop operating systems go to ‘sleep’ when they aren’t being used. Users have the option to configure the timeout period after which macOS will put the system to sleep. Users can […]

]]>If you leave your Mac unattended for a while, it will eventually go to sleep. This isn’t a revolutionary macOS specific feature. All major desktop operating systems go to ‘sleep’ when they aren’t being used. Users have the option to configure the timeout period after which macOS will put the system to sleep. Users can even disable sleep when the system is idle and keep it awake indefinitely. There are apps that will let you prevent your Mac from going to sleep. If you don’t want to keep you Mac awake indefinitely, rather just for a short period of time, give Lungo a spin. It’s a free menu bar app that lets you temporarily disable sleep on macOS.

Temporarily Disable Sleep On macOS

Install Lungo from the Mac App Store and run it. It runs exclusively in the Menu Bar. Click the app icon and choose how long you want to keep your Mac awake. You can keep it awake indefinitely or you can keep it awake for 10 or 30 minutes, or 1 or 4 hours.

The app shows you how much time is left before your Mac will go to sleep. You can deactivate the app anytime and let macOS go to sleep as per its settings. Lungo can be set to launch at start-up.

Limitations

Lungo is a reasonably useful app for when you need to temporarily prevent your Mac from going to sleep. This temporary period might be for the duration of a movie, or perhaps you need to monitor live data on your screen but not interact with your system. The odd shortcoming with this app is that it doesn’t let you set a custom interval for preventing sleep. The app recognizes that users might not want to keep their system awake indefinitely and keeping the system awake for a limited time is useful but it’s restricted to just four time periods.

The app is useful but it can be better by giving users freedom to prevent sleep for a custom time period. There should also be an option that lets users create and save these custom periods. Theoretically, users can always tweak system settings and change the sleep time out interval but doing so manually every time you need to prevent your Mac from going to sleep isn’t productive nor convenient. The app gives users faster access to preventing sleeping when they need to and allows them to leave their system settings as they are but it needs more options.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/how-to-temporarily-disable-sleep-on-macos/feed/1How To Force Chromecast To Updatehttp://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/force-the-chromecast-to-update/http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/force-the-chromecast-to-update/#commentsWed, 26 Jul 2017 17:42:59 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=203999Chromecast is one of the cheapest TV sticks available in the market. It’s got some reasonably tough competition but the Google brand helps it along a great deal. Google routinely updates Chromecast OS. The hardware too has seen a few improvements in the past but hardware improvements mean you have to buy a new device […]

]]>Chromecast is one of the cheapest TV sticks available in the market. It’s got some reasonably tough competition but the Google brand helps it along a great deal. Google routinely updates Chromecast OS. The hardware too has seen a few improvements in the past but hardware improvements mean you have to buy a new device while OS updates are much simpler. There’s no way to defer a Chromecast update. When an update is available, you have to upgrade the firmware. Unfortunately, the update doesn’t always go smoothly. It can fail mid-way or fail to appear at all and there’s no official solution from Google. The good news is, it’s pretty easy to force Chromecast to update. All you need to do is run a simple terminal command.

Prep Your Chromecast

Make sure your Chromecast is turned on and duly configured. It should be on the same network that your computer is. If you use a VPN on your computer, disable it when forcing the update. Also, it’s a good idea to check if there is actually an update available for Chromecast or not before you proceed. This method will force Chromecast to look for an update regardless if one is available or not.

Find Your Chromecast IP Address

You will need to find the IP address for your Chromecast. It’s fairly simple. Open the Google Home app on your iPhone or Android phone. Go to Devices and tap the overflow button at the top right of your device. Select Settings. Scroll to the very bottom of the Settings screen. You will see the current OS version on the Chromecast, the MAC address, and the IP address.

Windows

Open PowerShell in Windows. In Windows 10, PowerShell is shipped out of the box. On older versions of Windows, i.e. Windows 7 and 8/8.1, you will have to install it. Paste the following command in PowerShell and make sure you replace <chromecastIP> with the IP address for your Chromecast.

Once you execute these commands, your Chromecast will enter update mode. You will see the ‘Fetching update’ screen along with the progress dial. Wait for the update to download and install. Chromecast OS is normally a small download so the update should complete in no more than fifteen minutes.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/force-the-chromecast-to-update/feed/3The Best Linux Distributions For Mac Usershttp://www.addictivetips.com/ubuntu-linux-tips/best-linux-distributions-for-mac-users/http://www.addictivetips.com/ubuntu-linux-tips/best-linux-distributions-for-mac-users/#commentsWed, 19 Jul 2017 13:38:21 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=202427Interested in switching from Mac OS to Linux? If you’ve grown tired of Apple and are looking to get onto something new, we can help. There is a myriad of Linux distributions for Mac users that can give them something better to work with while still looking familiar. Here are our best picks. Elementary OS […]

]]>Interested in switching from Mac OS to Linux? If you’ve grown tired of Apple and are looking to get onto something new, we can help. There is a myriad of Linux distributions for Mac users that can give them something better to work with while still looking familiar. Here are our best picks.

Elementary OS

The clear choice for Mac users new to Linux is Elementary OS. It’s a Linux distribution with heavy Mac OS inspiration. Don’t call it a clone though, because that’s just not true. Instead, Elementary OS takes the good ideas from Mac OS and implements them with a twist. Those switching from the Mac should take notice.

The Elementary OS operating system is perfect for all types of Mac users. Be it power user or beginner, everything will feel at home. Everything will, to quote Apple, “just work”.

It is also worth mentioning that Elementary OS is based on Ubuntu, so the support for Apple hardware is hard to beat. Most devices, and drivers will have open source alternatives already in the Linux kernel.

Deepin

Introducing Deepin: an “easy to use” Chinese Linux distribution based off of the Debian Linux distribution. Deepin comes in other languages including English and Spanish. Chinese is not the only language choice.

While reading “Chinese distribution” might be scary to those not from China, it’s really not all that bad. The Deepin operating system, like a lot of other operating systems on this list are meant for beginners, and users that prefer things be easy. As Mac users often like their operating system to be without hassle, Deepin is a good choice to consider.

Ubuntu

It’s hard to talk about Linux without mentioning Ubuntu. And with good reason! It is the most widely used Linux operating system out there. No others come close. Those coming from the Mac will feel right at home with Ubuntu, even though the two operating systems look and act totally different.

The company behind Ubuntu has a similar mission to Apple: making an operating system that anyone can use. In fact, Ubuntu’s motto is “Linux for human beings”. The operating system works very hard to make it so anyone can pick it up, and get going with it without much fuss.

Using Ubuntu is a lot like using a Mac because everything will work out of box. Getting this Linux distribution working will require the least effort, as it easily has the best support for Apple hardware.

Whether you’re a software developer angry with Apple and looking for an alternative, or just bored of Mac OS, do yourself a favor and check out Ubuntu.

Solus

Solus is an entirely new Linux operating system. It’s not a derivative of Ubuntu like Elementary, or of Debian like Deepin. Instead, it’s an new take on Linux. The operating system is designed to deliver an elegant, easy to use experience that makes desktop Linux viable for average users.

The operating system, like Mac OS has it’s own “app store”, where users can easily install programs, games and etc. Additionally, it has a 3rd party section, that will ensure that users are able to meet their proprietary-software needs.

The Solus operating system is perfect for Mac users, despite the fact that it’s not sporting the obligatory dock because it fits with what Mac users need: simplicity, ease of use, and a good looking UI.

Trenta OS

Trenta OS is a stylish, open source operating system that attempts to give a “premium” feel to the Linux ecosystem. We can’t say that Trenta OS is the first choice for Mac users, as a lot of other Linux distributions do what Trenta proposes to do, only better. With that said: if you’ve gone through all of the Linux operating systems on this list, and you’re desperate to find a good alternative to Mac OS, it can’t hurt to give this one a go.

Conclusion

A lot of Linux distributions targeting Mac users tend to recreate the familiar OS 10 desktop. They come with a Mac-like dock, an icon theme that might as well be taken directly from Apple, among other things. On the surface, you’d swear it’s just superficial changes, designed to copy, but that is wrong. In fact, a lot of the operating systems we mentioned work very hard to implement features that will set themselves apart.

If you’re sick of Apple treating power users like trash in favor of general users, this list is for you. Even if you’re just curious, do try them out. After using them, it will amaze you at how well made these operating systems are, and how well they replace, and even trounce Mac OS in some areas.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/ubuntu-linux-tips/best-linux-distributions-for-mac-users/feed/1How To Get Bed Time Alerts Based On When You Need To Wake Uphttp://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/get-bed-time-alerts-based/http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/get-bed-time-alerts-based/#respondThu, 15 Jun 2017 18:44:05 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=199663Apple added a new feature in the iOS clock app called Bed Time. The feature helps you get 7-8 hours of sleep everyday. It asks you what time it is you have to wake up the next day, and then tells you when to go to bed. It’s useful considering most people use their phones […]

]]>Apple added a new feature in the iOS clock app called Bed Time. The feature helps you get 7-8 hours of sleep everyday. It asks you what time it is you have to wake up the next day, and then tells you when to go to bed. It’s useful considering most people use their phones as an alarm. The only thing is, if you’re awake and working, the device you’re looking at is going to be a desktop, not your phone. Sandman is a desktop app available for Windows, Mac, and Linux that does something similar to the iOS clock app. It gives you bed time alerts that ensure you get 7-8 hours of sleep.

Sandman looks at two things when it gives you bed time alerts; your working hours, and when you need to wake up. The app was designed with developers in mind who are prone to working long hours and missing essential sleep. The app learns what times a user works and tells them when enough is enough and they should go to bed.

Open Sandman. When you start out, it doesn’t know what your work schedule is. All you can do is tell the app when you need to wake up. It will work with that until it knows you schedule better.

When it’s time for bed, Sandman will give you an alert. You can dismiss it if you don’t like sleep, or you can use the Shutdown button on the alert to turn your system off and hit the hay.

Sandman is pretty smart. It takes into account how long you need to fall asleep. Some people fall asleep almost immediately. Other people stay awake for a few hours contemplating the meaning of life. Sandman’s bed time alerts can factor that time in. To configure how long it takes to for you to fall asleep, go to Sandman’s preferences via the Ctrl+P shortcut.

Set how long it takes you to fall asleep. Sandman can also alert you when you’ve been working for twelve hours straight though you can customize this time slot to make it shorter or longer. Additionally, you can switch from the 12 hour format to the 24 hour format if you like.

If you lose track of time when you’re working then consider using Sandman. Work is important but doing it in a sleep deprived state is hardly good for you.

You can dismiss an alert from Sandman if you’re not ready to go to bed, but don’t make a habit of it. Try and get the required sleep you need everyday.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/get-bed-time-alerts-based/feed/0How To Stop Automatically Unzipping Files In Safari On macOShttp://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/stop-automatically-unzipping-files-in-safari/http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/stop-automatically-unzipping-files-in-safari/#commentsThu, 08 Jun 2017 18:30:44 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=199155Safari doesn’t get much attention on macOS, or even on iOS. On both platforms, browsing giants like Firefox and Chrome are available. Users who prefer the speed and features offered by either one don’t have to compromise and use Safari. On macOS, Safari doesn’t have much of an advantage as the system browser. On iOS, […]

]]>Safari doesn’t get much attention on macOS, or even on iOS. On both platforms, browsing giants like Firefox and Chrome are available. Users who prefer the speed and features offered by either one don’t have to compromise and use Safari. On macOS, Safari doesn’t have much of an advantage as the system browser. On iOS, it still has an edge over the others given its closed environment. That said, it’s not a bad browser. If you’re using macOS, Safari is a reasonably good browser. In High Sierra, it’s going to be the first browser to automatically mute video ads. Another Safari feature is that it unzips any and all archive files you download. If you don’t like this, you can stop automatically unzipping files in Safari with a little change in its preferences.

Open Safari and from the Safari menu, select Preferences. Alternatively, just tap Command + , (⌘+,) to open Safari’s preferences.

On the General tab in Safari’s preferences, look at the very bottom. There is an option called ‘Open ‘Safe’ files after downloading’. Uncheck this option to stop automatically unzipping files in Safari.

Turning this option off does have its side effects. By default, Safari opens all files that it deems safe. This includes but is not limited to images and PDF files. When you download either types of files, it’s logical to assume you want to look at them right away. In that vein, Safari opens these files for you whenever you download them. When you turn this option off, you stop Safari from automatically unzipping an archive file, but you also stop it from opening other types of files.

There’s no middle ground here for you to take. You can opt out of the automatic unzipping feature but you also have to say good-bye to photos and documents opening automatically.

The only alternative is to use a different browser. If you prefer to use Safari, this is hardly an alternative. Chrome has similar auto-open settings but they offer better control. For example, Chrome can automatically open a PNG files once it downloads. At the same time, you can stop it from automatically opening JPG files when they download. More importantly, you can reset auto open settings for downloaded files in Chrome.

It’s safe to say that Safari needs an overhaul in terms of features. Given how happy Apple was with its new products at WWDC 2017, it doesn’t seem like they agree. Safari muting video ads is a nice feature and all but that’s kind of the major highlight of the browser at this point.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/stop-automatically-unzipping-files-in-safari/feed/2How To Get Google Assistant On macOShttp://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/get-google-assistant-on-macos/http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/get-google-assistant-on-macos/#respondMon, 22 May 2017 17:17:11 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=197091Google Assistant is Google’s answer to Siri, or Cortana. Google Assistant is the company’s attempt at a virtual assistant app. Unlike Apple though, Google isn’t restricting it to just Android. There’s already a Google Assistant iOS app which is limited compared to its Android counterpart but it’s there. You won’t see a Siri app for […]

]]>Google Assistant is Google’s answer to Siri, or Cortana. Google Assistant is the company’s attempt at a virtual assistant app. Unlike Apple though, Google isn’t restricting it to just Android. There’s already a Google Assistant iOS app which is limited compared to its Android counterpart but it’s there. You won’t see a Siri app for Android any time soon. While Google has made the Google Assistant app available on iOS of its own volition, it hasn’t released a desktop app for it. This is why you can’t get Google Assistant on macOS or Windows the same way you can get Siri and Cortana respectively.

The good news is, the developer community is on it. MacAssistant is a free open-source Mac app that lets you use Google Assistant on macOS. The app is still in beta but it works reasonably well.

Download MacAssistant. The developer isn’t verified so if you’re running the latest version of macOS, you won’t be able to run the app by just double-clicking it. Instead, open it Finder. Hold down the Ctrl key and then click the app. Select ‘Open’ from the context menu and the app will open.

MacAssistant runs from the Menu bar. Click the app icon in the Menu bar and sign in to your Google account.

We should warn you now that this app will have broad control over your Google account. It’s not something to worry about given the app is open source.

After you sign in, click the Menu bar button again. In the pop-up that opens, click the mic button and Google Assistant will ‘listen’ for your command. You don’t need to give the app additional access to your mic as it already has access to it.

Commands at present are limited but you can ask it general questions like what the weather’s like outside.

The answer to whatever you ask Google Assistant is spoken back to you. There’s no UI for it just now. If you have the volume turned down, you won’t be able to use MacAssistant in its present form.

Like the earlier versions of Google Assistant, MacAssistant works only with voice input. Unlike the app on Android which now lets you input text in Google Assistant, MacAssistant works only with voice commands. The app is still in its infancy so while we may have a wishlist of features, it’s not really fair to bring it up considering the app’s only been around for a week. It’s in active development so you can expect it to improve exponentially.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/get-google-assistant-on-macos/feed/0How To Open Recently Quit Apps On macOShttp://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/open-recently-quit-apps/http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/open-recently-quit-apps/#commentsMon, 15 May 2017 18:17:59 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=196349On macOS, closing an app and quitting it are two different things. When you close an app, you close all its windows. When you quit an app, you exit it. The difference is a closed app is technically still running. If you open it again, it will open much faster. Some apps don’t differentiate between […]

]]>On macOS, closing an app and quitting it are two different things. When you close an app, you close all its windows. When you quit an app, you exit it. The difference is a closed app is technically still running. If you open it again, it will open much faster. Some apps don’t differentiate between closing and quitting. If you close an app, you effectively quit it at the same time. App Be Back is a free macOS app that lets you open recently quit apps via a keyboard shortcut. If you recently quit multiple apps, you can re-open them all again in reverse order. App Be Back is like the undo-close for recently closed tabs in your browse, except it works for apps.

Download and run App Be Back. You can undo-quit or open recently quit apps on macOS for all apps you quit after running App Be Back. If you quit an app when App Be Back wasn’t running, it will not be able to re-open it. The app works via a keyboard shortcut, and its menu bar icon.

To open recently quit apps, simply tap the Shift+Command+W keyboard shortcut. This will open the recent app you just quit. If you tap the shortcut again, it will open the app you quit before that last app.

For example, if you quit Safari, Photos, and Calendar in that order, the first time you tap the Shift+Command+W shortcut, it will open the Calendar app. If you tap it a second time, it will open Photos. Tapping it a third time will open Safari.

You can set App Be Back to open at login. You can also customize its shortcut to anything you like. To customize the app’s shortcut, and clear its history, click the app icon in the menu bar.

From the app menu, select ‘Change Keyboard Shortcut’ to record your own shortcut for the app. Select ‘Clear History’ to clear the history of recently closed apps. If you want to set it so that App Be Back runs at login, select ‘Show Intro’ from the app’s menu bar menu. The intro screen has a launch at login option.

App Be Back is a pretty neat app to have running. The only thing missing is perhaps an option to hide the app’s menu bar icon. It works perfectly well with just the keyboard shortcut and the menu bar icon is seldom needed. You might need it to change the app’s keyboard shortcut but that’s not a recurring need.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/open-recently-quit-apps/feed/1How To Export All Layers In A Photoshop File As Imageshttp://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/export-all-layers-in-a-photoshop-file/http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/export-all-layers-in-a-photoshop-file/#respondFri, 12 May 2017 12:00:36 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=196185Layers are a basic feature in Photoshop. Unless you’ve actually used the app, or something similar, you don’t really appreciate layers for what they do. In a more advanced app like Photoshop, a single layer can form a complex part of the final image. Of course, you can have multiple layers in a single Photoshop […]

]]>Layers are a basic feature in Photoshop. Unless you’ve actually used the app, or something similar, you don’t really appreciate layers for what they do. In a more advanced app like Photoshop, a single layer can form a complex part of the final image. Of course, you can have multiple layers in a single Photoshop file. You can merge them into one, duplicate them, link them, etc. The final image can be saved as a PNG or JPG. What you might not know is that you can also export all layers in a Photoshop file as images. You can do this in bulk for a given file.

The export option lets you export all layers in a Photoshop file regardless if they are hidden or visible. It also gives you the option to export only the visible files. You can select which format you export the layers to. You can export each layer to individual PSD files of their own or export them as JPG, PDF, PNG, BMP, and TIFF files

Open the Photoshop file you want to export layers from. Go to File>Export>Layers to file.

A small window will open. Here you can select the file format the layers are exported to. More importantly, you can select where to save them which is just as important. You don’t want to suddenly dump over 50 layers worth of files on your desktop.

Click the ‘Browse’ button and select the folder you want to export the layers to. You can add a prefix to the file name. By default, Photoshop uses the name of the file that you have open. You can however change it to something else if you want.

If you only want to export the visible layers, check the ‘Visible Layers Only’ option under the prefix box.

Open the File Type dropdown and select which format you want to export all layers in the file to. In some cases, e.g., if you select JPEG, you can select the image quality.

The export process can take time. If your system is old, or doesn’t have a lot of RAM, it will take longer. Photoshop will open every single layer in a new file and then export it.

We tested this out on a system running on an SSD with 8GB RAM. The Photoshop file in question had 105 layers in it. It took about 2-3 minutes to export them all. You cannot selectively pick layers to export however you can choose to export all of them, or just the visible ones. You can hide the layers you don’t want to export and then export only the visible ones. That’s the only way to be selective about layers when you export them.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/export-all-layers-in-a-photoshop-file/feed/0How To Stop iTunes Syncing Every Time You Connect Your iPhonehttp://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/stop-itunes-syncing-every-time-you-connect-your-iphone/http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/stop-itunes-syncing-every-time-you-connect-your-iphone/#commentsFri, 05 May 2017 17:24:05 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=195515When you connect your iPhone to your PC or Mac, iTunes launches automatically. It never asks if you want it to open every single time you connect your phone or tablet. It just does this. There’s no built-in way to stop this from happening.If you’re on Windows though, you can stop iTunes from opening when […]

]]>When you connect your iPhone to your PC or Mac, iTunes launches automatically. It never asks if you want it to open every single time you connect your phone or tablet. It just does this. There’s no built-in way to stop this from happening.If you’re on Windows though, you can stop iTunes from opening when you connect your iPhone or iPad. You can do this by removing the iTunesHelper app from your Startup items. This trick works great to stop iTunes from opening. It’s a pretty heavy app and it drags down your system while it opens. When iTunes launches, it will start syncing and backing up any connected device. Again, it doesn’t ask if you want to take a backup. It just does it. The good news is, you can stop iTunes syncing every time you connect your iPhone.

You can stop iTunes syncing every time you connect your iPhone but this is a per-device setting. You can apply it to your iPhone but if you have an iPad, this setting will not persist. The setting has to be applied separately for each device you have.

This will open a summary screen for your device. It shows you the last time you backed the device up, and when it will next check for a software update, among other things.

Scroll down on this screen. You will see a section called ‘Options’. The very first option in this section is called ‘Automatically sync when this iPhone is connected’. Disable it and sync your iPhone i.e. click the ‘Apply’ button at the bottom.

This will stop iTunes syncing your iPhone every time you connect it. This option is available on both a PC and a Mac. Since this is a device setting, it will persist if you connect your iPhone to a different PC or Mac. It will not effect other devices. For example, your iPhone will not automatically sync when you connect it. If you connect your iPad, or your mom’s iPhone though, it will start syncing automatically.

Use this option cautiously. It’s annoying that iTunes doesn’t check how long ago the previous backup was and just takes a new one every single time a device is connected but, it also makes you take a fresh backup daily. The forced backup might just save your data. If you stop iTunes syncing your iPhone every time you connect, you need to be diligent about taking regular backups yourself.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/stop-itunes-syncing-every-time-you-connect-your-iphone/feed/1How To Download An IPA File On Your PC Or Machttp://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/download-an-ipa-file-on-pc-or-mac/http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/download-an-ipa-file-on-pc-or-mac/#commentsFri, 05 May 2017 16:58:37 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=195519An IPA file is an iOS app. If you have a really old iTunes backup folder, you will find a lot of these files in it. These IPA files are a back-up of the apps installed on your iPhone or iPad. The IPA file serves two purposes; if an app is pulled from the App […]

]]>An IPA file is an iOS app. If you have a really old iTunes backup folder, you will find a lot of these files in it. These IPA files are a back-up of the apps installed on your iPhone or iPad. The IPA file serves two purposes; if an app is pulled from the App Store, you will still have a copy of it that can be installed on your device. If you restore your iPhone, you don’t have to download apps from the App Store again, You can just get them from your hard drive. As of iOS 9 though, iTunes no longer saves IPA files. It does this to make the backup files smaller. When you transfer purchases from your iPhone or iPad, the apps no longer go with it. There is still a way to download an IPA file on your Mac or PC.

iTunes doesn’t transfer app files to your computer when it backs your phone up. It does still let you download apps from the iTunes Store. When you download an app from iTunes on your desktop, you basically download an IPA file. This file can be transferred/installed on your device.

Download An IPA File

Open iTunes. Click inside the search bar at the top right. Switch the search tab from ‘In Library’ to ‘Store’.

Search for the app you want to download an IPA file for. It will load the results from the App Store. You will see apps for both the iPad and the iPhone as well as iMessage apps. Click the app you want to download an IPA file for. You can click ‘Get’ from the search results, or you can go to the app’s page and click ‘Get’ there.

Sign into your Apple ID when prompted. It’s a good idea to use the same Apple ID that your iPhone is registered with. iTunes will start downloading the file. You can view download progress by clicking the little arrow button next to the iTunes status bar. When the file finishes downloading, the app’s page will read ‘Downloaded’ instead of ‘Get’. iTunes doesn’t tell you when it’s finished the download.

Locate IPA File On Your Computer

On a Windows PC, go to the following location in File Explorer. You will find the IPA file here. It will be named after the app you downloaded.

C:\Users\UserName\Music\iTunes\iTunes Media\Mobile Applications

On a Mac, go to the following location to get the IPA file.

~/Music/iTunes/Mobile Applications/

That’s all it takes. If you’re pressed for storage on your desktop, you can move these IPA files elsewhere. Remember that an IPA file is not the same as an IPSW file. The IPA file is just an app. If you lose it, it’s not that big a deal. The IPSW file on the other hand is a backup of your iPhone or iPad. You don’t want to lose it.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/download-an-ipa-file-on-pc-or-mac/feed/1How To Hide Menu Bar Icons On macOShttp://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/hide-menu-bar-icons-on-macos/http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/hide-menu-bar-icons-on-macos/#commentsTue, 02 May 2017 18:19:14 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=194853macOS has two places where you can access apps; the Dock, and the Menu Bar. The Menu Bar is a great way to access system settings like the volume, Siri, or your battery information. A lot of apps live in the Menu Bar because it’s omnipresent and the easiest place to access an app from. That […]

]]>macOS has two places where you can access apps; the Dock, and the Menu Bar. The Menu Bar is a great way to access system settings like the volume, Siri, or your battery information. A lot of apps live in the Menu Bar because it’s omnipresent and the easiest place to access an app from. That said, you can clutter the Menu bar with too many apps. When you have too many apps living in the Menu Bar, it’s no longer a convenient way to access them. If nothing else, it looks like a mess. Vanilla is macOS app that lets you hide Menu bar icons into a smaller menu. If you’ve ever used Windows, Vanilla mimics the system tray with its collapsed/hidden icons.

Download and run Vanilla. It will add an arrow button to the Menu bar. It doesn’t automatically hide menu bar icons. It’s up to you to decide which icons you want to hide. You can see the space on the Menu bar to the left of the arrow is a slightly different color. This is the other ‘section’ of the Menu Bar that Vanilla has created.

Hold down the Command key, click and drag the icon you want to hide to this other section. Release the icon and it will be hidden, You’re left with a little arrow on the Menu bar next to all the icons you’ve left visible. Click this icon and it will reveal the icons you’ve hidden inside Vanilla.

You need to keep Vanilla running in order to keep the icons hidden. If you exit the app, the icons will return. The app does let you hide its Dock icon so keeping it running isn’t too much of a problem. Vanilla is free but it also has a pro version that removes menu bar icons instead of just hiding them. The Pro version costs $3.99.

There are some exceptions with Vanilla. For example, it cannot hide the notifications menu bar icon. That icon stays where it is. Vanilla can hide most other system icons though so there aren’t too many exceptions.

If you don’t want to pay for the pro version of Vanilla, the developer has an alternate option. Share the app with two friends and you can get the pro version for free. If we’re being honest, $3.99 isn’t expensive for a Mac app but it’s nice to know there’s an alternative currency you can use to upgrade.

]]>http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/hide-menu-bar-icons-on-macos/feed/1How To Automatically Change The System Volume On Wake On macOShttp://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/change-the-system-volume-on-wake-macos/http://www.addictivetips.com/mac-os/change-the-system-volume-on-wake-macos/#commentsThu, 06 Apr 2017 17:43:52 +0000http://www.addictivetips.com/?p=190411When a system goes to sleep, it preserves the state it was in. If you had apps and files open on your desktop, they will still be there when you get back. Everything from your work setup to your system configurations is stored. When you wake your system, you can pick up work where you […]

]]>When a system goes to sleep, it preserves the state it was in. If you had apps and files open on your desktop, they will still be there when you get back. Everything from your work setup to your system configurations is stored. When you wake your system, you can pick up work where you left it off. macOS is no different. When it wakes from sleep, everything is exactly where you left it which is a good thing except in the case of your system’s volume. The volume is one thing that you might want to reset when you wake your system. If you left the volume high because you were playing music, it might startle you when you wake your system from sleep. Here’s how you can change the system volume on wake on macOS.

To change the system volume on wake, you need an app called AutoVolume. It’s a free open source macOS app that well reset the system volume when you wake your Mac from sleep.

Download and run AutoVolume. The app has a very basic interface. You set the volume you want your Mac to reset to when it wakes from sleep and enable it. Once you’ve set the volume, enable the app and close it. Be careful you don’t click the ‘Quit’ button. Quitting the app is different from closing it. If you quit the app, it will not change the system volume on Wake.

After you set the volume level, you can forget about the app. You won’t see any indication of the app running. It doesn’t so much as have a Menu bar icon. When you’re done, either put your Mac to sleep or let it enter sleep automatically.

When you wake your Mac to use it the next time around, the volume will have changed to the one you set in AutoVolume.

Although you can set AutoVolume to run at start up, it doesn’t change the system volume when you boot your Mac. This app in its current state is meant to work only when you wake your Mac. If you normally let your Mac go to sleep instead of shutting it down at the end of each day, AutoVolume will ensure you or your co-workers aren’t blasted with loud audio notifications or music.

The app is still under development and it has an interesting list of requested features so, even if it isn’t feature rich at the moment, it’s an app you want to keep your eye on.